Rachael and Garrett are VERY relaxed people. They love music and festivals, summer camp and adventures. They love exploration, traveling and late-night laughter over endless IPAs around a campfire. They met on a dating app and had mutual friends in common because they both had previously worked on the shores of Lake Tahoe as summer camp counselors at Camp Galilee. When they decided to design their dream wedding, it had none of the pomp and circumstance of a traditional event and all of the fun of summer camp. A Camp Galilee wedding was a no brainer as it’s a location that they both hold near and dear to their heart and their formative adult years.
It was both a surprise and NOT a surprise for me to arrive and realize that I knew a few of their guests. It was a surprise, because in my mind, Rachael and Garrett lived elsewhere – they had hired me from Colorado and have now moved to the east coast. That being said, they met in Tahoe and a good portion of their closest friends are also MY friends. So now, I’m just left with the bittersweet sadness that I didn’t meet these two fun loving, late night dancing, adventurous souls earlier. Either way, photographing their Camp Galilee wedding was an absolute delight. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: summer camp weddings are my JAM and I love them more than any other type of wedding. Full stop.
It was the perfect summer camp wedding: lawn games and kayaking, late night campfires and amazing meals catered by the Camp Galilee staff. Everyone who attended stayed in cabins on site, giving friends and family the chance to meet and spend time with all the other amazing people that surround Rachael and Garrett. It’s why I LOVE summer camp weddings: the collected experience shared around a few days that lends itself to so much more quality time than a “normal” traditional wedding would ever allow.
For Rachael and Garrett the number one priority for their Camp Galilee wedding was highlighting Lake Tahoe in their portraits, the location, and the people they love the most. A big group photo was high on their list of priorities (and it’s always a priority that I LOVE to accommodate because I think it’s so great).
Venue: Camp Galilee | Bride’s Attire: LUV Bridal
Other Lake Tahoe Summer Camp Wedding Venues
- Interested in other Lake Tahoe destination wedding summer camp venues? We have a number of options available around the lake from the most basic, to extra fancy, like the HideOut, an incredibly unique and remote venue near Kirkwood, CA. For moderately priced and exceedingly comfortable accommodations, alumnus of Stanford can hold weddings at Sierra Stanford Camp. For those looking for a summer camp feel, but without rustic cabins, check out Granlibakken Tahoe. For those looking to get down, dirty, and incredibly relaxed with a true summer camp vibe, Tahoe offers a number of amazing locations in addition to Camp Galilee: Camp We-Ch-Me, Camp Concord at the end of Fallen Leaf Lake, and Camp Sacramento near Lover’s Leap and Pollock Pines.
- If you are looking for a photographer for your summer camp wedding no matter where the location, contact me today! They are my absolute FAVORITE. If you’d like to see more summer camp weddings, check out Michelle and Jeff’s Adirondack Summer Camp wedding, Halie and Price’s Camp La Junta wedding, or Carla and Kurtis’ Camp Sacramento wedding.
- Summer camp weddings allow for more quality time with the people you love most. Instead of a few quick hours at one main event with 150 of your favorite people, you get an entire weekend to spend time and participate in activities with the people you invite. With everyone staying on site and in close proximity, quality time is maximized, more languid, and is gloriously missing the pressure of time constraints.
- Summer camp weddings offer activities and fun for everyone. Campfires, smores, lawn games, boating and more! Want to create a full summer camp experience? Schedule out games between warring tribes to get everyone involved. Capture the flag or dodgeball? War canoe or tug-of-war? The options are endless and you just need a giant score card and someone to spearhead the events organization.
- Do it all your way. You’ve already thrown tradition out the window (I applaud you for that) so really make this the wedding of your dreams and throw caution to the wind. Want a theme night? You have the time. Want to stay up late around the campfire with an open mic toast situation? You can. Don’t want to eat cake? Don’t. It’s your wedding, your way, and you get to spend three days jumping in rivers, face painting, or hiking if you want to.
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